Link Rephase
by guyinblack
Summary: The .hack/link game revised, with much of the story different from the game and manga's plot, and Haseo taking the main spotlight. Will introduce Kite and Tokio soon on later chaps. Main pairing for now is HaseoXAtoli.
1. Welcome back to 'The World'

AN: Before we start, I'd just like to comment on a few things. Anyway, the reason why I started this is because I'm not so keen on the story of .hack/link, being some kind of travel through time and doing all the stories all over again, save for the last part of the game (I think it's the last part, but i've never played so I don't really know). Also, I'm not such a big fan of Tokio. He's a nice main character and all, but it's just that I'm more on favor for Haseo. Don't get me wrong, I think LINK's a great game, and I would buy it if i just had a PSP, but I just wished that it could've had a fresh new story, and then put some returning characters in it.

.Hack/Link/Rephase vol. 1  
Phase 1: Welcome back...to "The World"

A blue sky. That was all he could see as his eyes familiarly gazed at the wide stretch of azure paired up with a calm breeze. He was rarely like this, but after that morning, he'd suddenly reminisced about numerous things. The word 'college' popped in his mind over and over again like a broken record. He was just one more year away from that word now that he'd started his last year in high school. At the moment, he felt a lot of things, but was irritated over the fact that he simply couldn't stop thinking about it.

Fortunately for the young man, a chime had suddenly rang from his computer, distracting him long enough to brush away the thought for now. On the monitor, the message 'Installation complete' was seen in bold letters in a familiar looking background that had 'The World R:X' imprinted on it. After three seconds, the rectangle disappeared, and a much larger one enveloped the screen. At that, the teenager slowly sat on his chair, wore a visor over his head, and grabbed a black controller right next to him. In a moment, a short flashy opening sequence played, and the login screen popped up in front of his eyes.

It took the boy less than 5 seconds to type in everything, but when he did, his eyebrow raised in confusion as he read a sudden message displayed.

"Please insert L.I.N.K.-002HASEO" He muttered to himself as he took off the visor. Looking to his right, just on top of a few music CDs, he spotted the black disk that had apparently been mailed to him with an unknown sender. The only information shown to him was a letter that said 'please wake up, your courage is needed again', and on the back, another which said "002"

In every angle, it seemed suspicious, but this wasn't the only odd happening that the teen had encountered. About thrice, he'd seemed to daydream to such an extent that it already seemed real. In those 'visions', he was in a dark space with a white figure with long flowing hair. With a familiar voice, the girl would always say, "Please wake up, your courage is needed again"

He stared at it for another five seconds, and then picked it up with his hand. "Well...won't know 'till we try" He said with a tone filled with suspicion.

The computer gave out a short beep once the disk was placed, and the login screen had suddenly skipped to what he thought was the 'character selection' screen. What was different, however, was that a character was slowly forming even though he hadn't even done anything yet. His curiosity got the better of him, and he continued to watch as a 3-D, human-like figure was being developed. First, the hair, which had been colored white and given a hairstyle very familiar to the eye. Speaking of eyes, his character was given crimson red orbs that slowly opened, staring right back at the player.

From then on, the process quickened. Black stylish leather clothing was placed around the body, leaving only a small part of his shoulder exposed. The other was ordained with a dark steel gauntlet. Finally, a red scarf was placed around the neck, and with that the character had been completed. On the 'name' textbox, a word which slightly widened his eyes could be seen.

"...Haseo..."

* * *

In a flash of swirling lights, the character known as Haseo had entered a lively city with buildings that seemed more advanced than what he remembered. A small notification appeared with the words 'Arc Resum', the name of the area. Looking behind, a slight nostalgia hit him as he looked at a floating Chaos Gate. The only difference was that it looked more grandeur this time around. The city took on a clear blue sky, a good number of plants and trees, and a statue at the very center of the city. The buildings were a bit like those of present time, but made to still keep that 'fantasy' look with strange engravings and at a few times, odd shapes.

After looking around for a moment, Haseo soon remembered something he was to do once he'd logged in.

_"She told me she'd be waiting at Arc Resum's Chaos Gate..." _He thought to himself, checking around the area. The Chaos gate was situated in a high corner of the city, and players could even see the whole landscape which was said to be very lively during the evening 'time' of the game. Actually, the city itself was floating in mid-air, so a player could also get a good glimpse of the sky around them from the Chaos Gate area.

Just then, Haseo had spotted a familiar looking person sitting by a silver colored bench. Just by looking at the character's name made him smile a bit.

"Atoli?" He said as soon as he was close enough. The girl quickly spun her head towards the voice, recognizing it the moment she heard it.

"H-Haseo!" The girl exclaimed before quickly standing up to her feet with a warm smile. "I-I'm so happy to see you again after all these months! How was the Course Training program overseas?" She asked, being polite, but she really just wanted to express how happy she was to see one of her closest friends again. A month after the Cubia incident, Ryou Misaki, the player behind the savior of "The World", took a seven month program abroad with the suggestion of his parents, as well as his own personal preference. This program concentrated on things like business and other things aimed at making someone more independent.

"It was so-so, I guess," He answered with a shrug and crossed arms before noticing the appearance of the girl in front of him. "By the way...your PC looks a _lot_ like it did back in R:2" And that it did, with a few differences like a slightly different hairstyle, a white beret which was much smaller than the headwear she had before, and some articles of clothing here and there which still took on a green colored theme.

Atoli chuckled in response, "I could say the same about your PC. Um...didn't you tell me you were going to make your character look as 'far back' as possible from the original Haseo so that people wouldn't notice? And, even your PC name is the same"

"About that..." Haseo mumbled as he squinted one eye in suspicion at the disk he'd used earlier. "This might sound a little off, but I found this black disk right on my table when I finally got back to Japan. I ended up using it, but now I can't even change characters, let alone even create another character for my account" At that, Atoli twitched in surprise.

"A-a black disk? Do you mean the one with the numbers "008" on a letter that was included?"

"What? So you got something like that too?" Haseo tilted his head downwards in deep thought. "Mine was 002 though. But still...it spells 'suspicious' in every way you look at it. If it was from CCcorp you'd think there'd be some kind of mention"

"Then what about Zwielicht?" Atoli added, but the word didn't seem to ring a bell for Haseo, and the blond girl could see that. "Zwielicht is another group CCcorp is working with for this game, and there are rumors going around that they're the cause of the game's very early release. I think the word is actually german for Twilight" Haseo was surprised he didn't know about that, but he did just get back to Japan a few days ago and there were still a few things to take care of, including the new school year. Surprisingly though, 'The World R:X' was released the same time when most schools would resume classes. Most guessed it was a marketing strategy to get more players since students would get together again to talk about various things.

_"I'm guessing she read the whole background story for this game too. Maybe it'd do me some good to browse it...but then again, maybe not. I'm still pretty busy"_

_

* * *

_

Even after taking a few minutes to make theories based on what was going on, neither of the two could figure much out. They decided it best to just play the game for the time being. After all, it'd been quite awhile since they'd done anything together. There was supposed to be some kind of scheduled event right about that time, so the two waited at the center of the city which was a wide circular area surrounded with the tallest buildings present.

"Attention, new players of The World R:X!" A man suddenly shouted, gaining the attention of all the players in the vicinity, impatient or not. There was something odd and familiar about the person up front, especially the voice. It took the two awhile, but they suddenly remembered whose voice it was. "Thanks for joining up on the very first day! To show our appreciation, we'll be giving out a special prize to anyone who can complete a certain event the fastest! All you have to do is go to the Delta Siegfried area and head up to the Beast Temple there! But be careful, if you don't proceed with special caution, you'll be asking for it!"

Already, the players were talking amongst themselves and forming parties to get ready. But first, Haseo and Atoli went over to the announcer to talk to him.

"Hmph, so you're here too, huh?" Haseo smirked with a raised brow, and the person immediately recognized who he was talking to. "Haseo! Whoa, it's been awhile! How've you been?" Without a doubt, it was the former phase of 'propagation', Kuhn, although the character was dressed completely different from how he was remembered, the name was still as always.

"So-so, I guess" The black-clad teen replied, "I see you're still working for CCcorp. I gotta say, I'm pretty impressed by how fast you guys released this, seeing that it's got a truck load of new features. Even the battle gameplay's kicked up a notch. I still haven't tried it for myself, but to be honest I'm a little bit curious"

"Hey, that means a lot coming from someone like you. Thanks!" The lively man said, and the former PKK felt a vein throb on his forehead.

"Wait, what do you mean someone like _me_?"

"Oh, N-Nothing at all. Anyway, be sure to teach this guy the basics, Atoli. I'm counting on you" He said and Atoli responded with a quick nod of her head. "Well, I'd better get going now. I've gotta make sure the event runs smoothly. See ya later!"

Hearing that, Haseo suddenly checked his companion's status. Turns out she was already level 5, meaning she's had even a tiny bit of practice with the game already. "That's kinda depressing...I'm feeling like a noob now"

It didn't take long for Atoli to realize what he'd meant. "I-I'm sorry! I was waiting for quite awhile, so I thought I'd go for a quick round with some people. I hope you're not angry..." She said, fiddling with her fingers in a nervous manner.

"Huh? Why would I be angry? I feel kind of relieved that you'd wanna try out something by yourself for a change. Anyway, you think you could ask those people to help us with the event?"

Atoli had momentarily stopped to think about what Haseo had just said. She was surprised, but then she knew that it was probably because she hadn't seen him in awhile. They'd exchange mail or text messages, but it's nothing compared to seeing someone face-to-face.

"I already sent them a short mail. They said they'd be here in a couple of- oh, there they are!" Atoli said, pointing over towards two people. One of them was a dark skinned girl with bright pink hair which looked short from the front, but actually had a long and thin ponytail. Her clothes, and a few bits of armor were colored in a majority of pink although her lower torso and shoulders were bare. Her companion, on the other hand, was fully equipped with either thick clothes or armor. His hair was white in color, and had an overall charismatic look about him.

"Hey, thanks for inviting us again, Atoli!" The pink haired girl said with a casual wave of her hand before glancing at the blond's companion. "Haseo...so he's the one you were talking about?"

Atoli nodded, "Yes! He's also played in R:2 like me" From there, the dark skinned girl scanned the boy from top to bottom with squinted eyes, as if staring into his very soul, much to Haseo's discomfort.

"Hmm...you know, I've heard of a PC with the same name as yours who just happened to be in R:2 as well. You that guy by any chance?" She asked with a grin and an all knowing tone, but thankfully Haseo had come up with a last minute excuse for the said question.

"Uh, n-no, of course not. I just liked the guy's character model, so I decided to make mine similar" But for a last minute excuse, a part of him felt degraded and stupid for having said that. "_Damn...what the hell did I just say? I'd never copy anyone like some wannabe...even online!"_

Sensing some irritation in the boy, the pink haired lady smiled and changed the topic. "Well, sorry for the trouble. I didn't mean any harm by that. Anyway, name's Blackrose, and this over here's Balmung_. _It's nice to meet you. We were waiting for two other friends of ours, but I don't know what's keeping them so long"

He wasn't sure, but Haseo had spotted somewhat of a twitching eye on the charismatic man's face as he heard the phrase 'two other friends'. Also, hearing those names unconsciously caused him to dig through his memories, swearing that he'd heard those names somewhere before. But no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't find the answer he wanted.

"At any rate..." The PC named Balmung spoke out, "We should probably head to the event area now. It wouldn't really be wise if we missed it" From that tone alone, both Haseo and Atoli could tell what kind of person this is. The adjectives that spun around their thoughts were 'serious', 'reliable', and in Haseo's eyes, 'suspicious', but that was just how Haseo was: Skeptical.

After the group had exchanged member addresses, they proceeded to the infinitely spinning Chaos gate. However, it seemed as though Blackrose and Balmung were exchanging whisper messages to each other.

"**That's gotta be them, no doubt about it**" Blackrose said, and the white haired man nodded in reply.

"**The description matches...but we still need to confirm one more thing**" The conversation seemed to go towards a serious route, but a giggle from the pink-clad woman was about to change the tone of the chat completely.

"**I can tell you're still mad at _them_. C'mon, don't hide it. It's written all over your face**"

"**I'm not about to comment on that...**"

* * *

One of the minor changes in the game was the new 'keyword expansion system' or K.E.S. wherein players can find keywords scattered throughout major or 'plot' oriented stages. These words can be used to make sentences like in previous revisions of The World, but the catch is that not all words can be combined together, and many require specific words to go first or after. Sentences can go up to even more than 5 words if a player has collected the right words. Rewards for completing special sentences include unique item events, permanent upgrades, and other perks.

On the topic of classes, there was a wider range than the last revision, and they were much more unique in qualities. Haseo's class was derived from the popular adept rogue, made famous by Haseo himself. This class was called the 'Cross weapon' class. Characters under this are given specific, and somewhat rare, base weapons. The reason being that these weapons have slots attached to them for connecting the base with other weapon parts. There is a large drawback to this class just like the adept rogue. The weapons and parts, being almost rare items, are hard to come across, and the class itself has relatively weaker starting stats as well as slow job progression. The base weapon he'd picked were twin blades. They're actually the weakest of the bases, but have the most slots and enable the use of aerial combos.

Atoli's class was that of an 'Illuminate Healer' or 'Illuminate' for short. Just like the Harvest Clerics of R:2, the Illuminate are the main healers of the party. They only concentrate on lightning spells now, so they're weaker than the former harvests in terms of attacking strength, but are significantly more efficient as their main role as the caretaker of the party. They make use of sphere rods or spears, but most choose to go with the former.

'Vane Crusher' is the class that Blackrose uses. They are one of two classes that can perform a 'crash' move which is basically a powerful swing that brings an opponent to the ground and temporarily stuns them. Many of a Vane Crusher's skills contain a crash move before, after or in-between skills. They are said to be the ground experts for their ability to keep a foe stunned to the floor. They are capable of handling the largest and heaviest of weapons.

Finally, Balmung uses the 'Blade Brandier' class, the only class crossed over from R:2, and a class capable of performing an air combo although they are much more efficient than any other class in this aspect since they have many skills that leave an enemy airborne.

Haseo and co. had used the word 'Siegfried' on the chaos gate and were immediately transferred to a mansion-like area, portraying a large courtyard with an azure sky overhead.

When it was time, Kuhn's voice could be heard from somewhere in the current area. "Alright, let's kick it in gear. This event is designed to help all you players get a head start on the level grind. If you've just started playing, you'll notice a notch up in the battle system called 'continuous assault'. In a nutshell, A lot of the fights you'll encounter will be in chains, meaning after you beat one batch of enemies, another group will most likely come running in based on the area from your keywords. Well, enough of the chatter, I'll be sending each of your parties to separate locations, so good luck!"

In a flash, each and every party in the vicinity was transported to a random location. Some were sent to the rooftop, others stayed in the large courtyard, but Haseo's party was sent to a place very distinct from the rest. This being a room humongous in size, for a party of four at least, filled with crystals of all sizes floating all over the room. Before they knew it. enemies had already appeared. They were creatures that resembled plants, with flowers as headwear, and arms that seemed like thorny vines. They were only level 3, so it wasn't much to worry about.

* * *

Before they'd even entered the area, Atoli had explained beforehand another change in the battle system: parties. Parties could now have up to 4 members, however, it was required that one member be in 'support' phase, meaning that this character's speed and defensive capabilities are lowered, but special bonuses are given to each class. For example, an Illuminate will be able to raise the party's defense (excluding the illuminate) as long as he/she is on support, and will gain even more as the character grows. The support system, however, is useless to 'cross weapon' classes because they don't receive any bonus whatsoever.

Blackrose begun the fight by smashing a giant blade onto the ground, stunning a few enemies long enough for her to launch them up in the air with a strong swoop. With that chance, Balmung leaped into one of the foes and struck it three times before charging his sword. "Swift Sabre!" He exclaimed before slicing the foe in half with a mid-air blue horizontal slash.

Haseo reciprocated, juggling an airborne enemy with many strikes before rocketing the opponent to the ground with both blades. The enemy wasn't beaten yet, so he smashed the opponent with an X-shape slash upon landing. To his surprise, the foe was still alive, but not after a quick lightning bolt struck it. Looking back, Haseo caught sight of the blond Illuminate who'd just cast that spell.

"Tch...I finally remember just how messed up level one is" He sighed before his body was momentarily surrounded in a yellow light, meaning he'd gone up a level. "Hm? Well, that was quick. I guess it's what Kuhn said about this event" But before he could say anymore, his senses suddenly caught an enemy heading towards the healer. Atoli spun her staff quickly to repel the vines aimed at her then sent another shock at the plant, this time being finished off by a quick thrust from Haseo. The last thing he'd realized was that the movements of the characters were much more flexible and faster. Even the healer of the group could fend off attacks with good reflexes.

Before they knew it, the third group had arrived, but this group was condensed into one single giant enemy. It was the same plant-like creature, but about seven times the size of the former. By now, Haseo had reached level 5, but his party members were at higher levels. Atoli was at 7, and Blackrose at 11, but Balmung was already at level 17 and hadn't leveled up at all.

Everyone attacked at once, starting off with a few lightning bolts, then a mighty swing from Blackrose that pushed the enemy back. Haseo dashed towards it, moving left and right to dodge any incoming vines before he climbed up its arm and directly struck the plant, causing it to fall over on its back. The attack wasn't damaging at all, but his experience in R:2 made him comfortable with the controls. By then, Balmung had already used the crystals in the room as leverage to jump as high as possible. With a short grunt, he lunged himself like a bullet towards the downed plant and finished it with a powerful thrust, creating a loud burst of blue energy that emanated from the sword.

It seemed that both players behind Blackrose and Balmung were also experienced when it came to battles, making Haseo even more skeptical about his sort of deja vu feeling.

"Wow, you two were amazing!" Atoli began, "Even though your levels aren't that high, you made everything seem so easy!"

"Well, you guys weren't so bad yourselves" The pink haired PC smiled as she rested her hand on the hilt of her sword. All there was to do now was wait to be transported out of the area, but for some reason, nothing was happening. After another five seconds, the stunned silence was suddenly interrupted with a sparking sound.

"What the?" Haseo muttered, checking his surroundings as the glitchy sound continued to echo throughout the room. The sound grew louder and louder until finally, fragments of data began to form in front of them. It didn't take long for them to finish merging, and the group could now see a concrete form. To put it simply, these characters were nothing short of corrupted. Every part of their bodies had bits and pieces that almost looked like they were chipping off.

With a grin, Blackrose gripped the hilt of her sword even tighter. "Looks like they're here" and immediately the colossal blade shone a bright light before changing completely. When the light vanished, the sword was more bluish in color, and had a more radical design with edges and spikes all over the blade.

Beside her, Balmung had suddenly sprouted what had looked like majestic white wings. "Hmph, I'll cut you down with one strike"

Neither Haseo nor Atoli could halt their surprise at that very moment. because they'd been away from any strange event for so long, they'd almost forgotten the feeling when faced with things like this. But now, they'd been dragged into another mess which may not be so easy to get out of.

"Just what the hell's...going on here?" Haseo silently said to himself. Atoli didn't say anything, but judging from the look on her face, their thoughts weren't so far apart.

* * *

AN: And that's the end of the first chapter. I'll try to explain more on what's happening next time. For this chapter, I just wanted to give an introduction on the game's new features, as well as bring a few characters back. I'm still anxiously waiting for an opportunity to bring Kite back, and Tokio of course. It wouldn't be .hack/link without 'em. There's a good chance I'll introduce kite in the next chapter as well as Shicksal, but I'm still unsure of Tokio although I've already thought up a plotline. And if you're wondering, this doesn't have a blackrose/balmung pairing. It's just that i wanted to use those in the intro chapter. Not sure why, but i just felt like it lol. Anyway, please review! Comments and suggestions make me feel really good even though it's criticism. Just knowing that the readers are really paying attention to the story is very fulfilling to me, especially with the effort i put into them.


	2. Legendary Dothacker

AN: To start off, I've decided to introduce another major character of the .hack series due to a few requests and is probably obvious once you read the title of this chapter. In this chap, I'll also be introducing the main plotline, or how the story will flow. I won't explain everything right here in this chapter, but this is sort of a good bit of it.

.hack/Link/Rephase  
Vol.1 - Phase 2: Legendary Dothacker

* * *

"Just what the hell's...going on here" Haseo silently said to himself. Atoli didn't say a word, but judging from the look on her face, their thoughts weren't so far apart.

Immediately, the corrupted PCs dashed towards the group with emotionless faces. All of them wielded swords with a color scheme between white and black. One of them fancied a thrust at Blackrose, but the girl swayed to the left before using the sheer weight of her weapon to cut the opponent's right in two, preceding a diagonal slash that diced the mysterious figure in half and left its remaining fragments to disappear. Behind her, another approached, but Haseo, still not knowing what exactly was happening, deflected the attack before it could reach her. Seeing an opening, Haseo launched another X-shaped slash and knocked the opponent on its back.

Unfortunately, it hadn't suffered nearly the same damage, but it was down long enough for Balmung to thurst his sword through, finishing it off. "Just stay back for now. We'll take care of this" The winged man said before flying off towards another enemy.

Haseo wasn't the only one having trouble dealing with these new enemies. Nearby, Atoli cast spell after spell, but nothing seemed to really damage it. The only number she could see floating out of the screen was a single digit 1. In the end, she ended up creating a barrier to defend herself from the dark stranger's repeated attacks. Unfortunately the barrier had a limit to much torture it could take, and this one had finally reached that point. The transparent dome shattered, and Atoli was now completely defenseless against the next strike.

With a sharp sound, the attack connected, but not with her.

"Haseo!" She cried out, staring at the back of the person who'd saved her. From his back, however, she could also see the edge of the blade that had thrust itself through him like a knife. He didn't know why, but the player himself felt a surge of pressure punch his stomach. It didn't feel like anything had stabbed him, but the feeling was still very painful. Once the sword was removed from his lower torso, he felt another sharp pain which only added to his dizzyness. He could see his world spinning right before him, and feint screams which were beginning to soften.

"Damn...what...now?" For the first time in a long time, Haseo actually felt like he was going to die. The pain just felt so real and great that one would probably think that way. There was no blood, but he still felt like he was done for.

But it was at that moment; that second; Haseo felt an abrupt source of power well up inside him. As it continued to grow, so did a voice deep inside his mind.

"Ha...seo" It said, and the black-clad PC knew right away who that sounded like. He couldn't believe his ears, but when the person now stood in front of him, it was all too clear.

"Is that...me?" He asked himself, surprised and at a loss for words. The boy standing in front of him had short brown hair, red eyes, and a silent expression that Haseo was so accustomed to. He wore a wardrobe that consisted of mainly black colors, forming the image of his real life self, Ryou Misaki, but there was at least one thing that was different. There were still traces of symbols on the bare parts of his wrists and face.

"Key...of the twilight. The children...need you one more time" The figure spoke out, even though Haseo had trouble interpreting what this person meant. "I am Eion...the twilight child. You exist...in me...and I exist in you"

And at that point, the figure began to fade away, but not before uttering one last line as the red patterns on his skin glowed. "My power...is your power"

Having regained his senses at the last moment, Haseo let out a short and powerful scream that even pushed the wind around them into a continuous gale. After the momentary display of power, everyone had noticed a change in Haseo which was noted on his arm. The right gauntlet included in his PC design was suddenly transformed into a more delinquent form with an average sized blade sticking out of the front end of the gauntlet. This hand-blade was colored in black with red insignia on the middle of the weapon. Along with that, there was also another change: His eyes. They still had the same color, but there was a sort of blank yet murderous look in them.

Without a word, the white haired PC grabbed the dark figure's whole face with his left hand before smashing it towards the ground with a great thud, even cracking the data-made floor itself. Even as the beaten opponent vanished into data, he continued his assault on all the rest, thrusting the blade into one then throwing the impaled body at another before bursting them both with a tremendous punch. Without looking, Haseo grabbed the bladed edge of an attacker behind him and crushed it with little effort. Still sporting that blank expression, he enfused the arm-blade with a dark red energy and pushed it through its body, releasing a straight blast that completely reduced the enemy to nothing; not even spare data.

From afar, Atoli, Blackrose and Balmung stared in complete awe at what had happened, but the winged man managed to regain his composure in the nick of time. "It's an abrupt awakening. Blackrose, we need to stop it before it completely takes over!" He yelled, snapping the vane crusher out of her trance.

"But that's easier said than done! We're gonna need a little more help to stop _that_!" She replied in a slight panic, but as the two were conversing, Haseo had already made his move before the two could realize it in time. As they turned their heads towards Haseo's direction, they saw the berserk Cross Weapon running towards Atoli at an alarming speed. The Illuminate could only stand frozen in fear even as her friends called out to her.

"Atoli! Get moving!" Blackrose screamed at the top of her lungs, but it was too late. At the blink of an eye, a loud crash was heard, and a cloud of dust enveloped the area temporarily due to the force of the impact.

* * *

"Atoli!" The pink haired girl called out again, but no response. Eventually though, when things started quieting down from the tension, both PCs could hear a screeching sound, like that of two metal objects scraping against each other. That was when an air of relief hung of over them, and finally revealed what was waiting behind that cloud of dust.

Atoli was there, safe and unscathed, and there were two others. One was immediately identified as Haseo, and the other was a light blue haired young man with red clothing over his black undershirt. He held a short sword in each hand which he'd used to guard Atoli from the attack.

At that sight, Balmung let out a relieved sigh and grinned. "Tch...took you awhile to get here"

Having finally lured Haseo away from the blond Illuminate, the boy known as Kite smiled back at the group. "Sorry, I guess I cut things a little close to the chest there" He replied as Blackrose and Balmung quickly regrouped with him.

"Darnit, Kenta! A little later and we might've had a big problem here!" Blackrose scolded with angry eyes, making the boy's own wander around in apology.

"A-Anyway," Kite started, "We have more important things to take care of right now. We'll discuss this after" While staring at Haseo who was currently in defense mode due to the new number disadvantage, the red-clad PC looked over at Atoli, still confused and helpless as her legs rested on the concrete floor.

"Don't worry, we'll make sure nothing bad happens to him, okay?" He said with a reassuring tone, gaining a hopeful nod from Atoli.

The trio started the attack all at once, with Blackrose leaping to the air and throwing the large sword at Haseo who dodged the ground shattering impact. Thanks to that distraction, Balmung managed to throw Haseo off-balance with a few swift swings from above and knocked him towards Kite, who in turn launched him mid-air with a strong somersault kick. Balmung quickly used his wings to reach the opponent and perform an aerial combo before using the hilt of his sword to knock him back to the ground.

"I hope you don't hold this against me!" Blackrose exclaimed before charging her sword with trembling maroon colored energy and thrusting it into the pavement, creating a line that exploded when it reached its target.

But even after that, Haseo still hadn't gone down for the count although the damage seemed to be taking a great toll on him. Noticing this, Kite made one final effort to rush towards the Cross Weapon. He ducked a now slow and easily avoidable strike from the berserk foe, and with great agility, slashed again and again with both blades. He was attacking so fast that the weakened Haseo had no chance to counter and instead fell completely prey to it.

"Azure Flash!" Kite yelled, ending the alacritous flurry with burning blue swords that knocked Haseo down; this time for good.

Atoli couldn't help but continue worrying for her friend, and this only worsened when she suddenly saw a bracelet-like program envelope around Kite's wrist.

"You don't have to worry" Balmung interrupted, seeing the slight fear in the girl's face. "He won't fall into a coma. I know you're aware of this ability so I'm telling you now. This is merely to contain the abnormal strain on Haseo's PC"

It took her a few seconds to comply, but finally she nodded her head respectfully. "I-I understand. But, please take care of him"

"We will" Kite interrupted with a smile. "We don't let our friends down"

* * *

Everything was dark and his eyelids felt a bit heavy for the moment. As seconds flew by, this condition started to disappear, and Haseo could feel his consciousness drawing back to him slowly but steadily. He could hear sounds around him too although a bit vague. When he could, he gradually opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was a plain ceiling with a symbol on top. Having his vision finally regained, he noticed that his character was lying down, and that his real life self was temporarily like that as well on the table top. The room he was in looked similar to that of an AtHome or the guild facilities back at R:2.

After placing his two feet on the ground, Haseo spotted a familiar person sitting down nearby. It was Atoli, sleeping peacefully with her head tilted slightly downwards. It had seemed that she'd fallen asleep watching over the black-clad Cross Weapon.

"Atoli" He called out, trying to be as quiet as possible as to not give her a rude awakening. He called out again, this time a little louder. Her eyes were slowly opening now as her head tilted back up. But when her eyes had realized who was in front of her, She instantly jumped from her seat and fell down startled, both in-game and out.

"Owww..." She mumbled as she rubbed the part of her hip that had taken the fall. It looked like it hurt, but the girl was able to get back up in a snap even before Haseo could help her.

"Um, it's good to see you're awake. How're you feeling?" She asked, completely forgetting about the pain on her side.

"Well, my neck still feels a little sore, but other than that I'm fine. At least, I think and hope I am"

"Oh, but that's good then!" Atoli responded with a smile. "I was worried that something had happened to you after _that_" By now, everything had come back to Haseo. He suddenly remembered that almost imaginary experience with the person who looked identical to his real life self. After that, he felt a strong build-up of power before ultimately going blank.

But before Haseo could ask his friend what exactly happened, the metal door nearby swung open, catching their attention. Standing there was the PC named Kite, and another person who looked much different in terms of clothing. She had long black hair, and an outfit that strangely resembled a military uniform in a number of ways. As the two walked towards Haseo and his Illuminate companion, the former couldn't help but picture a certain person in his mind. "_He looks...kinda like Tri-Edge..."_

"Good, you're awake" Kite began, "I'm still not that used to my power so I wasn't a hundred percent sure how things would turn out. Anyway, my name's Kenta Kosushi, but just call me Kite. It doesn't feel quite right when you're called by your real name here"

_"_And I'm Saika Amagi" The girl next to him continued with a tone a little less friendly than Kite's, "But likewise, I'd like you to call me by my in-game name, Panzer Saika"

"Panzer what?" Haseo repeated with a raised eyebrow, making the dark haired girl sigh.

"Just call me Saika then. People these days have no taste in history" After realizing that she might be going off-topic, the girl cleared her throat and continued. "Now, I'm sure you're wondering why you're here, and about what recently happened to you, right? But before I explain, have you ever heard of the Akashic Records?"

Atoli paused for a moment, recalling the word that had popped out in a forum back in her R:2 days. As she further searched her memories, she remembered the topic about it in the apkallu forums specifically. "Yes, I think I remember it. Is it supposed to be some kind of ancient artifact in this game's story?"

Kite nodded, "Yeah, that's about half-right. It _is_ an ancient artifact, but it doesn't have anything to do with the game's background. Basically, it's a program that holds a powerful function, but can only be activated through lesser programs called Chrono Cores. When these items are combined, it'll form a key to unlock the Akashic Records...or so its said"

"So you mean you're not sure of it" Haseo interrupted, "Well...just where _do_ you find these Chrono Cores then?"

Suddenly, Saika's face had turned a more serious expression upon hearing that question. "The Chrono Cores...are inside your PCs" As she looked at Haseo and Atoli's reactions, she proceeded with the explanation. "Your PCs...this game...and the Goddess Aura; all of these were created by the genius programmer Harald Hoerwick. This man was the reason that all of this exists, and I believe...that this man is still alive. Not alive in this game, nor in the real world, but in a separate dimension between the two"

* * *

Haseo couldn't believe what he was hearing. He'd never heard of the person named Harald Hoerwick, but the part about another dimension was purely outrageous in his opinion, and so with many others who had the slightest idea of modern physics. With crossed arms, Haseo began to ponder about the info fed into his mind.

"I know it's hard to believe..." Kite muttered, "But many things in this game have far surpassed reality, haven't they?"

At that, both former R:2 players wondered how this player could say something like that with such a straight face; like he'd experienced it first hand for himself. And at that moment, they remembered. They remembered of a short term, but popular topic that people would seldom talk about: The legendary dothackers who'd risked their lives many years ago. 'Kite' was the name of a particular person in that group who was said to carry a 'bracelet' with him, and it left little doubt that this was the same person.

"So the rumors were true..." The Cross Weapon remarked. "I never did take rumors seriously...but I guess now's a good time to start"

After emitting a small smile, the blue haired PC went on with the main topic. "Although Chrono Cores can be found in your characters, they can also be found in locked areas in 'The World' R:X. These areas will eventually be unlocked, but only as time passes by within this game"

"Within...'The World?'" Atoli repeated, a bit confused at the statement. From there, Saika took over.

"That's right. It wasn't CCcorp that made R:X, but Harald Hoerwick himself. A few months after the events regarding R:2, we received an anonymous email containing all the data necessary to form this current version of The World. Also included was a poem written in strange symbols. Zwielicht, the group where I belong, decoded a few parts of the poem and found lines written in German. Some of these translated lines were 'To summon the past brave', 'In the twilight sky they will meet', and...'After all is done, all is at its death'"

The last phrase sparked suspicion in both teens, but they attentively listened as Saika continued. "Some of these lines trace to the game itself. A particular part that states 'Time is the key to that which is hidden in locks' is probably referring to when the locked areas are revealed as time passes by. We further observed this when the game's 'clock' started ticking. It was dangerous to show this to the public, so we decided to 'beta' it and do it ourselves. But as it turns out, we were only able to reach a certain point before the 'clock' had stopped, meaning that new locked areas had stopped appearing. Another line we found was about the need for a world to grow with people. I think that symbolizes the requirement of a large amount of players for the game's clock to continue"

Just from those explanations alone, Haseo was now completely sure that he'd gotten himself into another mess, and this mess seemed to be even more problematic than the last one. In his mind, the teen could only hope for the best.

* * *

AN: Well, I hope you liked the return of Kite. I wanted to make his comeback a bit flashy, and what better way to do that than to start him off beating against a berserk main character haha. But Haseo will get his turn too to show off, eventually anyway. I just thought I'd stop the explanation here for now, since it's getting a bit too wordy. Although, I really hope you like how the main plot will flow, and the difference from the actual game if you know its story. I also used terms from the game like the Akashic records and chrono cores, but I'm planning to give them a twist. Anyway, see you soon!


	3. Life saving history lesson

AN: Yo, it's me again. First off, the name that I gave Kite's Offline self was something I made up since I wasn't able to find any info about his real name. If you do know something about it, please let me know. Anyway, please review after okay?

.hack/Link/Rephase  
Vol. 1 Phase 3: Life saving history lesson

Ryou Misaki's eyes were attentively focused on an email he'd received from Kenta Koshushi, otherwise known as Kite, one of the legendary dothackers. He'd already read it the night before, but his mind instinctively ordered him to browse through the message again just to make sure nothing was missed.

From Kite: Chrono Cores

"Like I said before, Chrono Cores can be found inside locked areas throughout 'The World', but they're also found inside our PC data. This is the reason why we're able  
To fight those anomalies called 'Strains'. When we encounter them, the area around us immediately turns into a small fraction of that other 'dimension' that Saika was talking about  
yesterday. We're still trying to figure out how to freely move within that space, but the codes that Harald Hoerwick left are highly complex. It's still unknown whether or not the  
Strains are a part of his plan, but it's being looked into. In short, this whole game is like a blueprint that all of us need to follow to know the truth. And what scares us the most...is  
that certain line that said 'After all is done, all will be at its death'. If that really is connected with us somehow...then what would it mean?"

Ryou paused at reading the first half of the email, looking down on his polished computer table as if he was searching it for an answer. But he knew, that just sitting down and doing nothing wouldn't help the situation. He sighed and shook the doubt within his mind before reading on.

"But...that doesn't mean we have to sit still and wait for it to happen. If we all do our best I'm sure things will turn out for the better. And besides, this is still 'The World' isn't it? Why not take some time to enjoy it every now and then? There's gonna be an event tomorrow with a pretty good prize up for grabs, especially for your class: A gun-part attachment for the base weapon you have. Bring Atoli along too. I think she'll be glad to help. Well then, See you there"

And finally the long email had ended, leaving the teenager to look up at the bare ceiling with his head resting on his palms. "_A gun part, huh? I guess it's not so bad a prize. My class is pretty much useless right now anyway. Even the people on the forums are starting to diss its weak points_"

Blue swirling lights surrounded Haseo as he entered the floating capital, Arc Resum. As usual, people were already up and running about even though it's only been a couple of days since the actual release of the game. In truth, it had actually gone through two beta periods. The first was merely to test out the locked areas and was only tested by CCcorp staff themselves, and the second was a month long trial in where numerous chosen players could keep half the value of their acquired levels, and selected items. One could say that these players were considered the 'veterans' of the game.

"Haseo!" A lively voice called out from behind. The boy looked over his shoulder to see a smiling Atoli quickly running towards him. She seemed even more excited than usual, much to Haseo's curiosity. "I'm glad that there's a chance for you to get stronger. I was looking around the forums and...apparently people aren't liking the Cross Weapon class very much..." She said with a tone that tried to wash away the harsh truth. Furthermore, the Cross Weapon class was the only build that wasn't implemented in the beta phase.

"I know...I've probably seen about two or three 'complaint' threads already and it's starting to remind me of the Adept Rogue...only more difficult because of the base weapon. If this class wasn't automatically stuck to my PC I would've changed it by now" That was another saddening fact in his opinion. The black CDs containing their characters were also fitted with a permanent class. Atoli was fine with hers, but Haseo still had much room for doubt.

And before anymore resenting could be done, Kite had finally shown up, along with one more party member, the pink haired Vane Crusher Blackrose. With smiles, they both greeted with casual waves.

"Hey, hope you guys don't mind if I come along too" The dark skinned PC said to which Atoli responded with a shake of her head.

"No, not at all! With a full party we'll have a better chance of winning" And she had a good point although the theme for the contest was still unknown. Haseo could still remember the variety of types ranging from time trials to quizzes, a few of which weren't so average in level.

Noticing that it was almost time for the contest, Kite called the group's attention to head for the destination. However, when Haseo checked the word requirement, the noun 'allocation' didn't seem to be in his word registry, but thankfully Kite had gotten his hands on two of them. It seemed that 'allocation' was part of the limited words that a player could obtain from areas, and could only be used a number of times.

* * *

(Delta Server: Night's allocation)

Just like the area's name, the field was covered with a pleasant night sky filled with twinkling stars. The lower ground consisted of a few buildings with concrete floors, bits of greenery here and there, and a cheerful array of lights that complemented the starry background. At the very center was an immensely tall cylindrical tower that sported walls covered in windows in every floor. This was where Haseo's party was transported to.

Atoli, being the kind of person she is, immediately leaned on the large windows to look over much of the area's graphical splendor. In comparison with R:2, the latest version had a few obvious upgrades in terms of overall design.

"Everything looks so beautiful from here" The Illuminate mumbled to herself as the others looked over as well. Haseo couldn't help but notice the expression on the blond's face. It was something he hadn't seen in awhile, and he ended up gazing at it for another three seconds before realizing what his eyes were doing, finally turning away rather quickly.

Just then, an automatic door swung open, revealing the familiar figure of the happy-go-lucky Kuhn who seemed a bit relieved. "Glad you could make it. I was waiting for you guys. Before we start...I just wanna apologize again for what happened the other day. We didn't have a choice, but I wanted you to know that many of the GMs were standing by, and we would've taken immediate action if Kite here hadn't shown up"

After the incident regarding the 'Strains', Haseo received a message from Kuhn, informing him about the plan to awaken his and Atoli's Chrono Cores. The latter's core failed to awaken that time, but the situation was becoming too dangerous to try and lure more Strains to that particular area. It's said that only confrontation with these anomalies can activate the Core, so there truly wasn't any other say in it.

"Yeah, I wanna apologize too" Blackrose started, "It was rash of us to do something like that..."

If he were still the 'old' Haseo, He'd be yelling at them with full force, but now it took a little more for him to reach that boiling point. After an evening of thinking about it, he came to terms with the situation and was just glad that it didn't escalate.

"Yeah, yeah...let's just get this over with so I don't have to feel any worse than I do right now about my class" He replied with crossed arms, making the group feel like a boulder was just lifted from their shoulders.

"Okay then, let's get back to the event!" Kuhn began, now in his usual self. "First off, your party is the 14th group to try this event. The others before you failed...some miserably, so you better buckle up for this one. If you manage to beat this, then the grand prize goes to you and other parties will be competing for another prize. As for the rules, all you gotta do is head up this tower via the elevator behind me. It'll stop at times, and then you'll have to complete a requirement for it keep moving. Anyway, just do your best, alright? I've got a hunch you guys can make it"

And with that, the GM vanished, leaving the group to take heed of what he'd said. "Well, we should get going then" Kite suggested and everyone agreed. Upon entering the elevator, Haseo recalled the many other gadgets that he thought shouldn't have existed in that period of time.

"Hey...anyone know how far the gap is between R:2 and R:X year-wise?" The Cross Weapon asked. "It just hit me because of all the equipment I've been seeing lately"

Just as expected, Atoli was the one to answer although either Kite or Blackrose had a pretty good idea as well. "Actually, one hundred and fifty years have passed in The World's storyline. Steam, which was basically what R:2 centered on, and magic from R:1 were both used to advance technology to how it is in present time"

In a few seconds, the moving cylinder had stopped with its doors opening automatically for the group, revealing what had been patiently waiting in store for them.

Looking eye to eye with a few monsters that had placed themselves in the room, Blackrose eagerly flashed out her intermediate weapon and swung at the open space in front of her. "Hm, I had a feeling this would be the first task. Simple, but probably the most straightforward" The enemies weren't high in level, so both groups were evenly matched. As the three front-liners charged towards the foes, Atoli had already begun chanting a few phrases as yellow circles begun to spin slowly around her.

Haseo moved quickly, spinning around to the backside of a knight-like opponent with its body completely covered in average armor. He hacked at its back with a couple of slashes before bringing it down with a sweep kick to its metal legs. As the PC moved in for the kill, the enemy suddenly moved its body to safety before using a large lance to retaliate. It attempted a few thrusts, but the black-clad character was able to elude them each time. After one last evasion, Haseo grinned as he quickly stepped to the left to allow a surge of electricity hit the knight and stun it.

"Game over" With one more strike, Haseo was able to turn the enemy into floating data.

On his own end, Kite used the specialty of the "Element Twin" Class to enfuse his two short swords with crimson flames. The enemy lunged towards him, causing Kite to leap in front of the knight and send a strong kick to its helmet covered face. Upon landing, Kite's blades danced on the adversary's body, covering it in flames after every stroke. Finally, he backed up for some room before hurling the two swords straight at the knight, splitting it into two clean halves, and reacquiring them like boomerangs. It was a basic Class skill, but Kite was able to use it to the best of his abilities.

But probably the person who had a much better brawl against these slow but heavily armored opponents would have to be Blackrose. Since it was a contest of power, the girl simply swung her sword at the exact moment that the lance would, countering it and giving her the split second she needed to bash it one more time with a great slash.

"Heh, that wasn't so bad" The pink haired PC said matter-of-factly as she confidently rested her palm on the hilt of her sword. The group wondered if it was a chain battle, but the elevator door swinging open was a sign that only one round was required. Before entering, Haseo stumbled upon an item that took the form of a yellow crystal that read 'Agility Gem'. It'd be a waste to simply leave it to disappear, so the only logical thing to do was take it.

* * *

With another intermission before the next task, Atoli decided to inquire about something she'd been wanting to ask ever since meeting Kite, Blackrose, and Balmung during the last incident. "Umm...so do you two directly work for CCcorp?" She asked curiously though lightly shy at the same time.

Kite nodded in response, raising up two fingers. "Right now, my time's been halved into two main things. One: College studies, and two: working as a tester for CCcorp. I joined them about a month ago, just when the first beta phase started, and now I think its obvious that I'm here for the long ride"

"But I'm not part of CCcorp though" Blackrose interrupted, "I'm actually part of the Japan Tennis Association, and I'm still training to go pro. I gotta tell ya, it's not that easy balancing this stuff with Tennis, but I think I'll be able to manage" After explaining a bit about herself, Blackrose grew interested in the two teens' Real Life profiles. "So how 'bout you guys? Are you still in high school?"

"Yes, I'm in my Junior year, and Haseo's a senior" She replied, supported by a nod from the former Adept Rogue. At that, the girl had remembered that neither of the two had even told them their real names beforehand. Since they're bound to work together for an undecided period of time, they might as well tell the new acquaintances their names, just as they had. "I know it's a little late, but offline I'm Chigusa Kusaka. I hope we can become good friends"

"Er...I guess I forgot about introducing myself" Haseo muttered, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "My name's Ryou Misaki"

At that, Blackrose let out what seemed to be a small giggle, making Haseo question himself with a raised eyebrow. "W-What? Did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, it's nothing" she answered back, still smiling at the red eyed PC's reaction. "Atoli's introduction sounded so polite right from the tone to the bow, but yours was kinda cut back and straight up casual. It's almost like you're polar opposites" Oddly, Kite and Atoli herself found that to be an interesting point, with the latter even giggling along.

"Tch...the hell's up with that?" Haseo finished with a faintly twitching eye.

Before they knew it, the elevator had stopped, revealing a sight beyond the glass walls that was even higher up than before but still impressive nonetheless. At the same time, an NPC had appeared out of nowhere. From the looks of its very petite body and pig-like features, it matched the qualities of the small grunty from R:2.

"Yo, yo! Glad you could make it! Welcome to the second task of this event. The rules are simple. All ya gotta do is catch me in a game of tag! But wait, what's this? I see you've got a Cross Weapon in your party. Alright, why don't we make things more interesting by letting the Cross Weapon participate alone? If anyone else interferes, then you lose!"

Somehow those words did the exact opposite of putting a smile on Haseo's face. He hated the fact that things might've been a bit easier if there wasn't a Cross Weapon class in the party, and to make matters worse, _he_ was the class the NPC was talking about. "Gah...fine, let's just get this over with" he concluded, stepping forward.

"Alrighty then! Let's begin!" With a grin, the miniature pig immediately dashed off to the other end of the spacious room. Haseo followed in pursuit, but was soon met face-to-face with a small wall that had suddenly rose from the ground, knocking the teen flat on his back.

"A-Are you ok, Haseo?" Atoli called out from behind as she watched her companion rub his forehead. From afar, they could hear the gleeful laughter of the target.

"Oh, I forgot to tell ya! Obstacles like these will pop-up from time to time, so it's best to keep your focus where it should be!"

Instead of ranting at the grunty, Haseo quickly used his rising annoyance and sped towards it, this time paying clear attention to what may come out. As expected, another wall which Haseo leaped over as he neared the target. Two more popped out along the way, but the PC stepped to the left and then to the right, avoiding them completely as his speed went undiminished. Oddly, the grunty simply stood with a grin, but Haseo threw that concern away.

Finally, he was just a few feet away when he took a sudden jump at the grunty and hoped to catch it with one attempt. Everything seemed to have slowed down at that point, with Haseo's hands almost grasping the grunty. Much to Haseo's surprise however, the small pig effortlessly pulled away with a single step to the right and sprinted off afterwards.

"Whoa, that thing can move" Kite pointed out as he replayed that exact moment in his mind. The white haired PC reciprocated the movement, but it was at that second he'd forgotten about the obstacles. "Damn, I forgot-" But before he could finish, another wall had clocked him like a powerful uppercut.

"Ouch...that one looked like it hurt...even if it _is_ a game" Blackrose commented as the three supporters imagined how much that would've hurt in real life. Amazingly, they stopped imagining after a quick two seconds. "I don't even wanna think about it..."

The walls themselves weren't the main obstacle here, but Haseo's class. The Cross Weapon class has yet another flaw, this time being its closely balanced stats. In usual MMORPG games, players would choose a specific build such as one that concentrates on agility and strength for 'fighter' classes. Because of the balanced points of a Cross Weapon, a player would have a hard time bringing out its full potential. In R:2, an Adept Rogue would be able to go for a specific build later on, so it wasn't that big an issue.

"You've gotta use your brain!" The grunty suddenly exclaimed with a small yet powerful voice. "This is one of the important rules for a Cross Weapon! If you use your brain well enough, then you'll be able to master its abilities!"

Quite frankly, Haseo didn't like the idea of being lectured by an NPC of all 'people'. However, it had a point. The weakness of his class were the things that were obvious to the eye, but its advantage was lying in the bigger picture. Earlier, Haseo had noticed that those walls had HP points, meaning they could be broken. The problem was that his strength was probably not enough to finish them in one attack so he could continuously dash.

_"But...what about my other status points?" _Haseo thought to himself, finally raising an idea in his head. He knew that in this version of The World buff items had different requirements to be used. With crossed fingers, he took out the recently found yellow gem and read its description.

_"Hmph, I get it now"_

Revealing a new found grin on his face, Haseo raised up the Agility Gem and crushed it with one hand, soon after surrounding the character in a similarly colored outline. Without wasting even a second of the item's time limit, he rushed forward, evading wall after wall that rose from the ground. In just seconds he'd reached that same situation as a few moments ago, but this time managing to catch the grunty by its small arm when it'd tried to break away.

There was a short five second silence in the atmosphere. Everything had happened so quick that even Haseo needed time to process some bits and pieces, but finally that silence would be broken by the voice of a relieved Atoli.

"You did it, Haseo!" She chirped as the party members regrouped with the victorious teen.

"Nice move back there" Kite complemented, "It's a good thing your magic stats were enough to use that. I guess the Cross Weapon class does have its perks after all"

Still hanging by Haseo's grip, the grunty let out one last laugh before congratulating him as well as disappearing into thin air. At the same time, the elevator door had swung open for the group once again.

* * *

This time, the rising cylinder had finally reached the top of the tower. What beheld the group was a view unlike anything else they'd seen in both earlier versions of The World. The mere combination of lights and the now near lit night sky was just something that could be etched in their minds for quite awhile.

To Haseo though, something just didn't add up. The last tasks weren't really that difficult and could've been completed by even those who'd beta the game before. If there were so many groups before them, then that would mean that this final assignment wasn't going to be of the same difficulty as the other two.

"Welcome...seekers of the truth" A sudden female voice echoed, causing the whole party to look around the roof of the highest floor of the tower. It sounded gentle, yet mature in a way."You who desire to become stronger...answer this question..."

Everyone eagerly awaited what the voice was going to say next. And finally, the mystery person came out with it.

"What is...the _true_ name of this world?"

That question felt like a hard smack below the waist. It was at that concrete moment that Haseo had realized why the other groups hadn't come out of the event with the prize.

"I-I didn't even know it had a name!" Blackrose exclaimed, scratching the back of her hair in confusion.

"Same here..." Kite added, only fanning the flame of ignorance. "We'd always call it The World...but I've never heard of this world actually having a name. This might be something even most CCcorp staff wouldn't know about"

But as their faith in themselves had weakened, Atoli seemed to be incredibly deep in thought, almost as if she was solving a scholastic Algebra problem. "Umm...I think I might know the answer" She muttered, surprising her party mates to the core.

"Y-You do?"

"Yes, in the background story of The World R:2, it was said that this world had stayed nameless for the longest time, and was only known as 'The world of Waves'. But in R:X's plotline, a new system of government was founded, and they decided to name this world 'Neue Welle'. Am I right?" She finished, looking around the dark blue sky where the voice had originated.

After an anxious five seconds, the female voice had finally answered, "That is correct. Your knowledge is impressive, and for that you shall be rewarded. Step forward, you who are enlightened" And Atoli did just that as a box with a grandeur design had appeared in front of her. Upon opening it, she received a rather average sized piece of metal with two barrels attached to a small grip and trigger. It also had a port where something could be inserted.

"Here, I think this belongs to you" The female illuminate smiled as she handed Haseo the part. With a thankful smile on his own face, the Cross Weapon took the item and analyzed it from top to bottom. When it was decided, he chose a specific port on his right blade's hilt and merged it with the gun. With a clicking sound it was now confirmed. There was also something else that Haseo had noticed. It'd seemed that his Strength and Dexterity stats had gone up at a good enough rate which was yet another plus.

"Thanks...I guess I wouldn't have gotten this without you" the black-clad PC said with an embarrassed tone, rubbing the back of his neck unconsciously.

"Well, come on already" Blackrose interrupted, "Aren't you gonna try it out? I think we all wanna see it, you know?"

It wasn't just them that was curious, but Haseo was even more so. He lifted the new weapon, took aim at the infinitely large night sky, and then pulled the trigger with a confident grin.

But then...nothing happened. Even when he'd pulled the trigger again and again, still nothing had happened except the hollow sound of an empty gun. Hesitantly, he checked the item's description and frowned at what was written.

'Gun function only accessible at level 15'

"You've gotta be kidding me..." he muttered as he glanced at his own level which was six numbers away. Luckily, it was still an early level, but the Cross Weapon felt his face turn a flushed red from shooting first and asking questions later.

"I-It's okay, Haseo. It's only six levels away" Atoli said, trying to comfort her friend who'd smacked his forehead with his palm.

Kite muttered, "I don't think that's his main concern right now, Atoli..."

"Ditto" the pink haired Vane Crusher added, "He looked kinda cool too...but that last part just killed the whole mood"

* * *

AN: Hope you enjoyed it. I might try drawing concept arts of the characters (yes, I can draw but not so good lol) so you guys could get a better idea of how they'd look like. Somehow I don't think written descriptions are really enough. Well, I'll be seeing you then.


	4. Reawaken, Terror of Death

AN: Just a quick change. I recently found out that Chigusa, Atoli's player, was a year below Haseo in high school, so i've decided to change the bit in chapter 3 about her saying she was a senior to Junior. I'm really sorry about the mistake. Also, thanks a lot for the recent comments. It really motivates me more to keep writing. Anyway, I'm thinking of introducing Shicksal in the next chapter. They're that antagonist guild in Link if you didn't know. On the topic of Haseo's new weapon. It's actually just one gun attached to the right blade, and has two barrels for two simultaneous shots.

EDIT: Seems there's something wrong with chapters 3 and 4. I'm not sure if it'll still be corrupted this time but I'll see. If anyone could help, I'd appreciate it.

* * *

.hack/Link/Rephase  
Vol.1 Phase 4: Reawaken, Terror of Death

To say the least, this day was a good one in the eyes of Haseo. For one thing, he'd finally reached the level he'd been waiting for and was currently testing out his new weapon, though it was a tad bit too aggressive.

A lizard formed monster leaped towards the Cross Weapon hoping to crush him with its giant fangs. With a prompt sidestep, Haseo effortlessly dodged it before taking a swing with his left blade and knocking it down. Suddenly, the PC stopped where he was, waiting and smiling at a good opportunity. The enemy was enraged by the teen's taunts and rushed to him again like a wild bull. When its large mouth was close enough, the former Rogue plunged his right gun-blade into its mouth before rapidly pulling the trigger, opening multiple waves of fire. When he was done, the monster vanished into floating data.

"That was incredible, Haseo!" A voice, turning out to be Atoli's, said with glee. Beside her, the white haired Balmung shrugged as both players sheathed their weapons away.

"Not bad. I guess you've gone up a bit in strength" The former dothacker stated, "But I hope you don't get too excited just because you gained a single weapon attachment. Remember; A Cross Weapon's abilities are still inferior to a regular class' abilities"

Haseo knew that all too well by now. He'd only gained one single gun, unlike his exclusive Dual Gunner class in the former version which included two firearms. Whats more, this gun had a slow reload time although it could fire two bullets at once.

"Yeah, you don't have to remind me. I just need to get more weapon attachments to become even stronger. But for now...I guess this'll do"

Now that the Cross Weapon had temporarily had his full, Balmung proceeded with a more important topic. "By the way, I wanted to talk to you two about your Chrono Cores. Kite already told you that these are the reason we can fight the Strain, right?" After the two gave complying nods, the man continued. "To further elaborate, there are actually three main types of Chrono Cores in PC data. The first, which are carried by PCs like Blackrose, are weapon types, meaning that the Chrono Core directly affects the weapon of the user. The next, Artifact types, are those with granted abilities like my wings which allow me to move in mid-air. The final type, which you belong to, Haseo, is the 'Drain' type"

"Drain type?" Haseo repeated with a questioned tone.

"Yes, Drain types are PCs with data altering abilities. In your blank state, you've demonstrated this by transforming the left gauntlet in your PC design into a weapon. Drain types are also capable of using 'Data Drain' which I'm sure you're well aware of by now. Coincidentally, Kite also falls into this category"

After the explanation, Atoli decided to inquire about her own character. "But...what type do I belong to?"

"It's hard to say at the moment" Balmung replied, "Without the Core actually awakening, we can't find out. The only thing we're assured of is that your PC does hold a Chrono Core"

Haseo could tell she was a bit disappointed by the look on her face. If anything, she disliked being useless to others, especially those who rely on her for something. That was just how she was, and he knew she wouldn't be 'Atoli' nor 'Chigusa' without it.

There was also something else that Haseo wanted to inquire about which had been on his mind ever since the first incident. "Hey, while I was unconscious back then...there was this person who appeared to me like in a dream or something like that. That guy...looked just like me- the offline me. He said his name was Eion, a twilight child. Care to explain anything about that?"

Unfortunately, Balmung shook his head to that seemingly new information. "Hmm...a twilight child?" He said again while placing his hand to his chin. "I don't recall that ever happening to me when my Chrono Core activated. Maybe it's related to when you went berserk"

Just then, a short mail had made its way to each party member's screen. It was from Saika, the Zweilicht member.

**"A new area has opened. Meet me at Arc Resum's Chaos gate ASAP"**

**

* * *

**

The group did as told and was at the designated area with the black haired PC, Panzer Saika or simply Saika for short.

"Good, we're all here" She began with a pleased tone. Along with them were Kite and Blackrose. "Before we start, I'd like to inform everyone that this area is a confirmed 'Lost Ground', unlike many others which were merely normal areas" It was explained to Haseo and Atoli about what these 'Lost Grounds' are. They differ a great amount from the ones named in R:2 because of one single fact. These were the areas claimed to be different 'dimensions' or to put it simply, mirror servers created by Harald Hoerwick that exist between the online and offline world.

There was one more fact that differentiated them, but both Haseo and Atoli were told that it'd be easier if they'd experience it for themselves. It made them a lot more curious, but it wouldn't be long before they found out.

"Alright, let's go" Kite calmly said, and Saika began inputting keywords into the rotating Chaos Gate. **Bewildered Man's Actions** were the three keywords she'd entered, and suddenly blue swirling lights had surrounded each and every member.

Haseo's mind immediately expected that same quick-second loading screen to appear in front of his eyes, but instead, he found that his character was actually floating downwards in a colorful stream of data. Looking around him, he spotted his other party members, including Atoli who looked just as surprised as he was. But as he checked his surroundings, the Cross Weapon had also noticed why they weren't in a party. For a team of six, a logical player would at least form a party no matter how unbalanced the number is.

Kite had noticed the confusion on Haseo's face and quickly knew why. "I have a hunch you have two questions in your mind right now. No, I can't explain what this current area is...but yes, there's a reason to why we haven't formed a party"

"Hmph...what makes you think I'm asking those?" Haseo replied with a grin, making the red-clad PC do the same.

"Like I said, It's just a hunch"

At the end of the long stream of data was a white light which was so bright that Haseo couldn't help but close his eyes. When he'd opened them a couple of seconds later, he almost couldn't believe them. "Just where exactly...are we?"

Everywhere he looked, he could see modern-day buildings- the real offline world type of buildings mixed in with patches of grass and other elements that one could find in some parts of The World. There were signs on the constructions written in Japanese, but there also existed fantasy-like structures. In his view, it almost seemed like...

"Our world...mixed with the online world..." Atoli muttered as she clasped her hands together. In front of her she could see what looked like a shop. On the front of it had a placard that read 'Sapporo Brewery'. "We're actually in...Sapporo?"

"We are, but at the same time we're not" Saika replied. "As I've said before, this is a mirror server that connects part of our world with the game world itself. Some of the game's features are still effective in our PCs...but some of them aren't. If you haven't noticed by now, the player sitting in front of your screen doesn't feel like she's actually there, does it?"

At that, Atoli had finally realized that she was seeing the whole area through her own eyes, and yet she could feel somewhat of a connection with her other offline self. She could still think about moving with the controller and it would actually work. Subsequently, half of her mind told her that she was moving on her own. "It...almost feels like my consciousness is split in half"

Blackrose muttered, "Because it literally _is_. Right now, you're experiencing both this world and the real world. The reason why we have to go to these places is to find the Chrono Core hidden away somewhere here"

"But it's not that easy" Balmung added with a stern face, "As soon as we're able to access these Lost Grounds, Strain are released throughout the area like a mine being stepped on. We don't know why, but I think its Harald Hoerwick's way of keeping this from falling into the wrong hands" And as soon as he'd finished that sentence, the man looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Well...speak of the devil"

As expected by the group, the Strain definitely had shown up, and they weren't small in number either. Counting from start to finish, there were about twenty or so of them.

Cracking his knuckles, Haseo focused his full attention towards the enemy before pulling out his two blades. In a moment, the two weapons lit up with a bright red outline of sparking energy "I guess I don't have a choice. Let's just get this over with!"

* * *

About halfway through the battle, Haseo made an assessment over the in-game functions that had been rendered useless in this area. Apparently, the party and support member system has completely been cut off, and things like lock-on, and enemy analysis has also been taken from the system.

After firing a few shots, Haseo sprinted towards a typical Strain and leaped above it. In mid-air the PC maneuvered his body so that the gun was pointed directly at the abnormality's head before placing a couple of bullets through. Another one was alerted by the loud noise and confronted Haseo who in turn shot at it. However, the weapon's ammo ran short and Haseo found himself clashing his left blade with the Strain's own. Surprisingly, the foe's physical strength was incredible, and the boy found himself being pushed back.

Just then, a quick lightning bolt had struck the dark cloaked figure and although it hadn't damaged it in the slightest, it gave Haseo the chance he needed to slip behind and finish off the enemy from there.

"Atoli, it's not safe to keep drawing them towards you with attacks like that. You don't even have your Chrono Core yet. Without it you'll-"

"I know...but I need to do what I can to help!" The illuminate interrupted boldly. Haseo had a feeling she'd react that way, but he just wanted to remind her to keep some distance away from the enemies. The Cross Weapon paused for a bit, but then sighed in a mixture of caution and relief.

"Yeah, I knew you'd say something like that" He said with a surrendering tone, "Just do your best then...and make sure you keep your guard up, you hear?" And with a big smile coupled with a nod, Atoli returned her focus on the battle just as Haseo did.

With a little more time and effort from the group, the fight had soon ended, leaving the area just as it was before the Strain had appeared, with the exception of a few damages due to the battle.

"So, what now?" Haseo asked as he sheathed his weapons away. As he'd said that, Saika began to look around her as if there was something nearby. Her footsteps were slow but steady as she loomed her dark eyes towards different spots until finally one certain point had caught her attention.

"There it is" Suddenly, the girl had lunged her arm into the thin air in front of her, creating a sort of ripple that tore apart a small space. A moment later she pulled her arm back from wherever it'd gone, and held out a small item for everyone to see. It took the form of a block of data that seemed to be wandering about the space above Saika's palm. It carried a variety of colors that continuously changed throughout the data's 'body'.

"It looks so pretty" Atoli started with joyous eyes, "Is this what a Chrono Core looks like?"

"Yup, in the flesh" Blackrose responded, "Well...I mean data. Anyway, this is only what an _area_ Chrono Core looks like. The ones in our PC are more stable than this one. By stable, I mean that it doesn't float around like this"

As soon as she'd finished, Kite had suddenly sensed something from afar. For a brief second, he wondered what it was, but ultimately his eyes had quickly widened in surprise.

"Get down!" He yelled, catching everyone's attention as the bracelet on his wrist activated. Without a moment to lose, the red-clad PC held his hand in front of him at an upward direction and the bracelet soon collided with a shrieking beam of light that struck it with great force. The ground beneath Kite began to break, and the buildings around them were being affected as well. The attack was bringing out a sound so loud that Haseo even had a difficult time figuring out what was currently happening due to the disturbance. All he could see were bright lights crashing together as tiny debris began to fly out of the grass-mixed road. With something of that magnitude, he had no idea what could happen.

After a good five seconds, the unknown assault had finally stopped, leaving Kite to kneel on one knee as he breathed deeply in exhaustion. The rest of the members ran towards him in a worry. "H-Hey, are you alright?" Blackrose asked as her companion continued to inhale and exhale tiredly. Looking to his right, the Elemental Twin now saw who it was that had launched the attack. It was a man with silver hair that covered his left eye, and emphasized a cold and silent look on the right, blue eye. He wore a similarly colored trench coat with black leather pants and gloves.

* * *

Haseo didn't know who this person was, but the man had already made the first hostile move. An instant after pointing his gun at the enemy he fired every single bullet in the chamber. All that the projectiles collided with was a single sword that the man had used to deflect them until the gun was empty.

"Who are you?" Balmung threateningly asked as he pointed his blade at the mystery person. He didn't answer, and instead continued to walk towards them.

Saika, pointing a large rifle at the man, waited for an answer as she closed one eye and aimed at his head. "We asked you a question" She repeated, but still no answer. Finally, she fired two quick shots at the stranger who this time had disappeared completely instead of guarding. Balmung immediately saw an attack coming and dashed in front of Saika, clashing his sword with the hostile man who backed up after awhile.

From both sides, Blackrose and Haseo quickly approached the man. The former swung her sword, but the foe ducked and grabbed her wrist before flinging her body at Haseo. From above, Balmung hoped to get a direct hit, but that plan of action hadn't worked either. To his surprise, Balmung's sword was caught by a mere few fingers of the stranger's hands before kicking the winged man a few ways back.

Once again, Haseo continued to slash repeatedly at the enemy although each of them were unsuccessful. The man counterattacked with a thrust, but the Cross Weapon had hoped for that and attempted the same trick he'd used earlier on Blackrose. He sheathed both weapons and used one free hand to grab the hostile's wrist before using the other to grab the neck and bring him to the ground. As it happened, Haseo's head began to throb, and this only worsened when the Cross Weapon met eye-to-eye with the trench coat wearing man.

"_What the-"_ But before he could react, Haseo fell prey to the distraction and felt his forehead meet with the man's hand before being hit by a force so strong it pushed him about ten feet away. At that moment, as he was falling, everything began to blur and his mind felt heavy and hazy. Soon, everything had gone black.

When his eyes had opened again, it was still the same scenery. Everything was dark; just like what had happened a few days ago. In his thoughts, he'd already predicted _him_ to come: The so called twilight child, Eion.

And in a flash, _he_ was there. "Key...of the twilight" the look-alike whispered, "You are in need...of power...power which I...can give you. Open up...your mind to me...and give me...control"

Haseo felt like he was hallucinating as the boy in front of him drew closer and closer. His mind was falling blank and numb, as if being forced against his will to give in. His eyes, just like his mind, were feeling heavy as well. Bit by bit, they slowly closed until only a small portion remained seen. The only thing he could see now was a 'Ryou Misaki' copy reaching his hand out to him. _"Getting...sleepy..."_ he thought as his mind slipped away.

All of a sudden, another hand had grabbed the twilight child's arm, causing the teen to come back to his senses. Now, yet another person stood in front of him. His back was turned against Haseo, but the PC could spot black clothing that was wrapped in a majority of chains. The man's outfit appeared wild and rugged, and had long, rowdy black hair. For some reason, the surprised teen felt like he knew this person, but at the same time couldn't recognize him.

"What's wrong, kid? I thought you were better than this!" The chained man exclaimed with a smirk. His head slightly turned towards Haseo, and the boy could now see an eye with the same blood-red color as his character's own. What's more, there were three bright red dots around the main pupil.

Slowly, names were popping up in Haseo's head like a slot machine until it concluded at one in particular. He didn't know why, but he felt like this certain name belonged to this person. And so, his lips softly uttered it.

"...Skeith..."

* * *

And there comes the cliffhanger lol. I'm not too fond of cliffhangers much, but I felt like using one for this chapter. I hope the descriptions were clear and understandable enough. Well, if you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to tell me. I really really appreciate the comments, even criticisms because it tells me that the readers are really paying attention to the story. Anyway, I'll see you soon!


	5. Starting up again

AN: Big thanks for the suggestions and comments! It seems that chapters 3 and 4 are finally here to stay. A few days ago, those two chaps were really causing some problems, but at least it looks like it's over and done with. Anyway, please review after reading! And enjoy!

.hack/Link/Rephase  
Vol. 1 Phase 5: Starting up again

Haseo stared directly into the eyes of his former partner during his days in R:2. He was surprised, mainly because he thought he'd said goodbye to the avatar all those months ago. He could still remember the event just like it was yesterday. All the Epitaph Users had bid their avatars farewell about two weeks after The World had been saved, telling them that their mission was finished, and that they could finally rest within the game.

However, Haseo and Atoli's avatars, Skeith and Innis respectively, had called their partners to the Hulle Granz Cathedral for their own goodbyes. At some point, these four had formed a tight bond with each other because of their experiences, especially when Atoli had been taken over by AIDA. The farewell was short, but would stick in Haseo's mind for as long as he'd lived. After saying what they needed to say, the avatars vanished into lights that gently floated around the majestic cathedral, leaving Haseo and Atoli speechless for a little while as they simply watched the lights slowly disappear.

"You're back...but why?" He asked his avatar who'd turned his head towards the twilight child, Eion.

"Because I still felt like I had some things to take care of. Got a problem with that, kid?" The seemingly late-twenty year old man answered back with a grin before gripping the Ryou Misaki clone's wrist even tighter. "As for you...try anything like that again and I'll make sure you're dead" At that threat, Eion's eyes narrowed in irritation before slipping away from the two.

"Someday...you will accept it" The clone concluded, finally disappearing into the black darkness around them. With a sigh, Skeith turned back to his partner and crossed his arms as Haseo would usually do.

"Sorry, but this ain't the time to be explaining things. Your friends are looking pretty screwed already, so you should probably get back to them" At that, he reached out his right hand, and Haseo, although still confused, nodded in agreement before taking it with his own hand.

"Fine...but you better tell me everything after this is done" Haseo grinned as the abyss had finally been pierced with a white radiance that continued to spread throughout the surroundings. At last, The Cross Weapon had returned to the virtual reality.

The mysterious silver haired stranger dashed at an injured Kite, with Atoli standing in front of the kneeling PC as a last effort defense. Kite urged the Illuminate to get out of the way, but the girl bluntly refused. At the last moment, a loud clash had echoed.

Fortunately, it was steel clashing with steel, not flesh. Standing in front of Atoli and Kite was a newly awakened Haseo who stood straight as the blade in his hand overflowed with a red energy that outlined the weapon. With the gun on his right, he pointed it straight at the foe's head and pulled the trigger, lashing out a large burst of energy that was even able to devour about 3 floors of a building.

"H-Haseo?" Atoli mumbled to herself as she and the rest of the party watched as the powerful beam faded away and left a crumbling path. Eventually, the stranger was seen resting on a pile of rubble seconds before standing up to his feet with the same emotionless look on his face. Without even a word of caution, he once again strode forward at his opponent, and Haseo did the same. Both fighters repeatedly mashed their weapons together at a now evenly paced speed. When Haseo would attack, the silver haired man would defend and vice-versa.

The latter noticed that the fight was stretching on and had decided to put it to an abrupt halt. Raising his hand towards the group, he proceeded with the same attack that left Kite injured and inactive.

"Kid, whatever you're gonna do I suggest you do it fast!" Skeith's voice exclaimed from Haseo's thoughts, sensing a high surge of power emanating from the enemy. Likewise, Haseo built up energy of his own until red patterns could be seen all over his body. After sheathing both blades, he flashed out a large red scythe overflowing with his stored strength.

"No, you don't!" As soon as the blast of energy was fired, the Cross Weapon immediately spun the scythe in a blinding speed, acting as a shield that held off the mere magnitude of the opposing attack. Just like before, a loud noise screeched from the collision, and sparking lights made vision somewhat difficult.

"Keep going!" Skeith yelled as his partner continued to defend himself. Seconds passed, and the attack had finally died down, leaving Haseo and the white haired swordsman standing before each other although the former was slightly out of breath.

_"Tch...I don't think I can take much more if this keeps up"_ Haseo warned himself, but unfortunately for him it'd looked like his opponent wasn't in the same situation. His face still remained as blank as ever, but now there were evident sparks on some parts of his body; just like a robot that had taken damage.

* * *

Though expected, Haseo gritted his teeth when the swordsman proceeded to attack him again. He lifted up his defenses the best way he could, but just then, the two fighters sensed an incoming shot and immediately stepped back from their current spot. From afar, a bullet was fired that either could barely see, until it'd hit the ground that was. Upon impact, the bullet froze about 5 meters worth of ground, turning it into a semi-glacier that stood erect.

"Oho, that's as far as you go" A voice said from afar, leading to a man wearing a long dark cloak, a gold spectacle on his right eye, having long white hair, and wielding a single yellow revolver. The expression on his face was that of a happy-go-lucky person, but with a different side to it as well. Still smiling, the middle-aged looking man pointed the firearm one more time. "If you attack them again...then I can't guarantee your safety" He alerted, setting his finger on the trigger and aiming for the silent swordsman's chest.

Finally, the expressionless man took the hint of his new number disadvantage coupled with the damaged sustained from Haseo's attacks. Without even uttering a sound, the man disappeared in a swirl of blue lights.

Upon standing up to her feet, Saika stared at the last-minute savior who sheathed away his golden revolver. "I didn't think they'd send the ever-busy Flugel to help us. I guess the government's really getting their feet wet for a change" Saika spoke in a toneless manner, neither for nor against him.

"Hm, well you know, it's in our best interest if things went smoothly. I was just here to watch, that's all" He replied with a carefree tone and a shrug before taking out a tiny piece of candy which he slowly unwrapped. "But it looks like you've got everything under control now. That's good" At that, the man known as Flugel put the unwrapped treat in his mouth and chewed it.

Kite began, "So, you're the leader of Schicksal then. You really saved us back there, so thanks" the red-clad PC said with a welcoming tone and an outreached hand to which the carefree seeming man shook with a smile.

"The feeling's mutual. It's an honor to meet the person who'd contributed much to this 'world'" and in the corner of his eye, he spotted the former adept Rogue who looked back at him with neutral eyes. "And I see the other savior's here as well. It's a pleasure to meet you, Haseo" Although Flugel's tone was warm towards the teen, the same couldn't be said about Haseo.

"Yeah...same here" the black-clad PC responded with crossed arms. It wasn't that he was trying to seem suspicious, but there was just something about this man that he couldn't quite understand.

"Alright then" Flugel began, "I think it's time I got going. I've got plenty of things to take care of, after all. Ta-ta" Blue swirling lights danced around the man until his smiling PC was no longer in sight.

Saika paused for awhile before facing Kite. "Well, you were quite friendly" She said with a slightly sarcastic voice.

"He _is_ working with the government, so I think it'd work best for us if we didn't do anything rash" The Elemental Twin replied, earning a sigh from Blackrose.

"But there's just something about the guy that's just...urgh, I don't even know _how_ to explain it"

* * *

After returning to the real world, Ryou Misaki stared straight into a setting sun that seemed even bigger nowadays. In the past, Ryou would hardly ever go out to the balcony right next to his room, but recently that old habit has taken a 360 degree turn. When he wanted to get some contemplating done, he'd simply lean his arms on the balcony rails and glare at the sky as if it was looking right back at him. Right now, he had something especially important to think about, and that _something_ could apparently sense it.

"Hey kid, you gonna start talking or not?" Skeith's voice asked with an impatient tone. It'd seemed that Skeith now existed on a deeper level with Ryou; not just along the lines of an MMORPG anymore. This time, the avatar seemed to be directly linked with either Haseo or Ryou Misaki's mind. "Hmph, guess I'll start then. I'm not really sure where to start, but I think you outta know _why_ I'm still here"

At that, the teen's expression had changed into something similar to a curious scientist's as his partner began to elaborate. "Back at the Hulle Granz Cathedral...me and Innis _did_ decide to leave you two at first, but then we had a sudden change of heart. We thought to ourselves that maybe someday you'd string yourselves into some mess again, and it'd be that time that we'd show up. Actually...more like we _couldn't_ show up, and that we'd been in 'sleep' mode for the friggin' longest time"

"Sleep mode?" Ryou uttered in question.

"Yeah. Before The World R:2 was shut down, I transferred my data to your computer through the 'old' Haseo. From there, I transferred again, but this time to your M2D headset. To be blunt, I wasn't even sure what would happen to me if I just stayed there, but I'd be asleep anyway, so it wouldn't matter. I've got no clue why, but when you put your headset back on to play this R:X, I felt myself coming back to my senses"

There was practically only one thing Ryou could think of that might piece in the puzzle. To play The World R:X, an upgrade to the M2D set was required. The advertisements said that it was because R:2 was given so many system upgrades that the M2D couldn't possibly handle all of it. To solve the problem, the M2D was introduced with a never-before-seen add-on called 'neural enhancement'. This small add-on was equipped with sensors that could detect neural waves from the brain and direct a tiny portion of them into the headset, therefore enabling a player to experience all the upgrades of the game, especially graphics-wise. If a player used the older version of the headset, he or she would possibly just see blotches of polygons due to the compatibility issue. This new MD improvement, however, was surprisingly cheap, so people wouldn't have a hard time just to play the game. It was also said to be perfectly safe.

"Oh...I think I'm starting to see the picture here" Skeith started after hearing the explanation. "Those neural sensors are probably what caused me to leak into your mind as a neural wave, meaning that all my physical data might've been converted into a more mental state"

Ryou was beginning to see the connection as well, but he couldn't help but grunt, "Wow, look who's the brainiac all of a sudden"

"Hmph, I've been here for a LONG time, kid. And I'm data that just keeps getting smarter and smarter. I bet you were surprised when you saw me in a more human form, huh?" It was true. At first, the teen wasn't sure whether or not the person standing in front of him not so long ago was really his former avatar. The name Skeith did come out of his lips, but he just had so many doubts about it.

After all the pondering, there was still one more question in Ryou's head. "Then...Innis is still waiting for Chigusa, right?" He asked, sounding even more curious than awhile ago.

"Chigusa? Oh, so I'm guessing that's the name of Atoli's player. Well, I can't say for sure, but this lucky hunch tells me 'yes'. And it's a pretty damn good hunch"

Shortly after, a chime could be heard from Ryou's desktop, indicating that he'd received an email. Before going back to his room, however, his eyes met with an old man's that seemed to wonder in utter confusion at the boy. It was at that point that he'd realized.

_"Crap...he probably thinks I'm some psycho for talking to myself for ten minutes sraight..."_

_

* * *

_

From: Atoli  
Subject: That last area...

Hello, Haseo. That area...was pretty strange wasn't it? It almost seemed like one of those post-apocalyptic movies, but the scenery was really pretty actually. I think we were in Sapporo...judging from the sign on the Sapporo Brewery; or at least, it _looked_ like Sapporo. It only makes me wonder if there are other areas that'll lead to other parts of Japan...or even other countries. I'd be fun to go sightseeing, wouldn't it? But, I guess this isn't the right time to be joking about things like that.

Also...after the battle, you told me that Skeith had come back. Do you think Innis would come back too? It's just that...I kind of miss Innis, and it would be nice if I could see her again.

P.S. Isn't Sapporo where Alkaid lives? Before we left the area, I wondered if we'd be able to see our friends from R:2 again like Silabus and Gaspard.

From, Atoli

"That girl..." Ryou muttered with a small smile, "She always writes emails so formally, I guess I'd be a real jerk if I didn't reply"

In the span of a few minutes, Ryou had finished his own message and sent it back as soon as he could. In the span of a few seconds, the electronic letter had traveled all the way from Tokyo to Chiba, and reached Chigusa who immediately opened the floating envelope.

From: Haseo  
Re: That last area...

Yeah, I guess that 'Sapporo' look-alike was pretty cool, except for the Strain of course. I talked to Skeith about it, and he said that he's got a 'pretty damn good hunch' that Innis is still there. He also told me that he hid through the M2D headset, so I'm guessing Innis might have done the same. Don't go opening it up though; you won't find anything by doing that.

I'm pretty sure Alkaid told me that she lived in Sapporo, but I don't know if she'll be playing R:X. I guess I wouldn't mind seeing them again though. And who knows? Maybe she's already playing and we just haven't seen her yet.

P.S. I'm serious about Skeith saying 'pretty damn good hunch', so don't go believing it's some new catchphrase I have, alright?

Chigusa chuckled upon seeing the last line of the email. "I see Skeith's developed quite a personality" She happily said, sticking the thought in her mind that someday her own avatar will return to her.

Back at Ryou's home, Skeith scanned the email one more time and grinned, "Heh, you sure have taken a soft spot for her, haven't you?" Quite frankly, every nerve in his body told him to say that for the prize of seeing his partner blush in embarrassment.

"Shut up, you mental piece of scratch!" The teen fired back as he stood up from his seat.

"Oh? Well I'm not the one shouting to myself with no one around, and you say _I'm_ mental?"

"Tch...why you-"

Just then, another chime echoed from the desktop, causing Ryou to quickly lose the tantrum he was about to throw around. Calmly sitting back down, the boy fixed his eyes on the screen.

From: Kite  
Subject: Guild!

I don't know if you've heard, but CCcorp's implementing the 'guild system' very soon. Might as well try it out, right? Anyway, meet me over at Arc Resum's statue plaza so we can talk about it.

"A guild...I'm not saying I don't like them, but I just don't feel like joining one right now" Ryou sighed as he closed the message. Meanwhile, Chigusa had received the same email, but was a lot more enthusiastic about it.

"A guild...Oh, I can't wait to join one again!" She chirped with glee, but suddenly a thought had passed her mind. "But why do I think that Haseo won't feel the same way I do about it?"

* * *

AN: And that's a wrap. Hope you liked it. This last bit kind of gives a small clue for the next chapter. Nothing much else to say, so I'll be seeing you then!


	6. Kite's Secret

.hack/Link/Rephase  
Vol.1 Phase 6: Kite's secret

In the already familiar Arc Resum, players gathered around for one certain event that meant a lot this time around: The GSE, or guild symbol event. A week had already passed since the event was announced for this day, and many people of many ages decided to take a chance. Some wanted guilds for business purposes, others planned to use it as bragging rights for passing the competition, but there were also those who plainly wanted a guild for the simple reason of enjoying the game even more.

At the central plaza, the landmark known as 'Chivalry' quietly stood out. It formed the image of five knights standing at five different points, much like the tips of a pentagon. In The World's background story, Arc Resum acted as the link that bound the five races together; the humans, beasts, elves, Eingards and finally Mana. The last two races were said to have been founded during the one hundred and fifty year gap. The Eingards are more or less what one would call a cyborg. Humans, with much improved steam technology, created artificial life beings with both organic and metallic parts. Mana are those born from a human and Elf and were said to be in hiding until conflict had caused them to rise up and act. They mostly have human features, with the only elf-half quality being an insignia on their ears.

System-wise, Kite's character was of Mana race, matching perfectly with his class, the Elemental Twin. Mana are said to specialize in an element, and the red-clad PC chose fire which can be seen from the red symbol on his ear.

Speaking of the Elemental, Kite sat on a bench right below the statue, his eyes focusing on a unique arm sleeve on his right arm. After the last incident, part of Kite's data, specifically the arm on which the bracelet was on, was damaged due to him guarding the group from the silver haired stranger's initial ambush.

"Hey, earth to Kite" A female voice said, leaning closer to his ear. "HEY!"

Finally, the red-clad PC snapped out of his former trance and finally looked up at the pink haired character that had startled him. "Oh, Blackrose. Sorry, I was just thinking about something" he said with an apologetic smile.

"Thinking of what?"

"Well...uh, it's nothing important" Kite replied and quickly changed the topic. "Anyway, there's something I need to tell you. Please don't get mad or anything but...I need you to participate in the event without me"

"What!" Blackrose loudly exclaimed the moment those words had hit her mind. "But you're the one came up with the idea in the first place!" Although he'd told her not to be angry, half of him had implanted the idea that she would, without a doubt, do the exact opposite.

"I know, I know..." Kite started, placing his hand on the back of his neck. "But I need to take care of something; something important" At first, Blackrose stared at the boy in suspicion, but Kite's straight face clearly spelled out that he wasn't lying at all. With a sigh, she returned to her normal self.

"Fine...just make sure you finish up whatever that is. You're lucky I'm pretty interested in this event too. or I might've changed my mind" She replied with a grin of slight sarcasm that made the Elemental Twin feel a lot more relieved inside.

"Thanks, I owe you one" he said with a grateful smile as blue circle waves enveloped the PC until he was completely out of sight.

"Yeah, you sure do"

It didn't take long before Haseo and Atoli arrived at the assigned meeting place, although they were a bit startled on why Kite had suddenly gone off and left them to take part in the event without him. Just like the pink haired Vane Crusher had said earlier, it was mainly _his_ decision after all. 'I guess it can't be helped..." Haseo sighed, "Anyway, do we have the right area words?"

Blackrose nodded, "Yeah, although we still have the problem of a three-man party. We're gonna need more help and an Illuminate Healer's best as a support member; not a front-liner" She said, and both former R:2 players couldn't help but agree to that.

Atoli interrupted, "Maybe it'd be best if we went to the area first? I remember that sometimes people would go directly to areas and _then_ look for members" Apparently she had a good point as well. Most of the players who wanted to participate had already gone to the area by now, so it wouldn't hurt to check there for open members.

* * *

Two large wooden doors swung open, showing the full form of Kite. Before walking, he glanced around at his surroundings and noticed that nothing much had changed. There were organized pews of benches lined up with each other, an elaborate floor design with a shiny finish, and a platform at the very front. All in all, these designs formed a cathedral; a building which struck the boy with nostalgia.

"Are you here?" Kite called out as soon as he'd reached the wooden platform. He waited, and then was answered.

"Yes, thank you for coming" a warm voice responded as a white figure floated down in front of him. It was a girl wearing a white flowing dress and had similarly shaded eyes and hair. One would think that this girl was a sort of maiden at first glance. "But...why is your decision so soon?"

Kite paused for a bit, looking at his right injured arm and then held it towards the girl. "Aura, this PC isn't going to hold out much longer. I would've waited for a better time, but the damage on my right arm is only making the timer move faster. I can already feel him taking control of me...in this world _and_ the real world. If I don't do this now then I might not have another chance"

The girl known as Aura looked straight into the determined Kite's eyes, and she saw no uncertainty whatsoever. But still, her face showed a sign of sadness. "There is still another way of fighting Cubia, Kite. You must not avert all your attention into this way alone"

"But this is the only way that has a perfect chance" He immediately replied. "a year ago, the virus known as AIDA was wiped out completely by a system reboot and only left the non-agressive side to remain. If I could just do the same, then maybe I could save him- save Cubia"

"Fighting someone in order to save that someone..." Aura began. "It is truly an ironic act...but I suppose irony is not the best way to describe this. If you end it this way...you know what will become of you. Knowing this, do you still wish to continue?"

Without a doubt in his mind, Kite nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm sure"

**(DELTA: Company's guide)**

Haseo, along with Atoli and Blackrose, had arrived in the specified event area and had already gone half-way through the event although without a fourth member. The place itself didn't look that unique unlike the 'elevator' area used during the Cross Weapon upgrade event. It merely took the form of a small wasted city with broken buildings, barren gardens, and cracked roads.

Just like the most recent upgrade event, this one was also a race to obtain the item known as a Guild crystal. The difference was that this contest carried fifteen guild crystals that would be exclusive until a month later; when guilds would be open to all players. The rules were simple: Run through the dungeon as fast as you can before the other parties could get their hands on the item. After all fifteen are obtained, all players will forcefully be exited from the area and brought back to the root town.

"Attention all players, three crystals remain" A system admin voiced throughout the whole area as Haseo's team dashed as fast as they could.

"Tch...we're running out of time" Haseo pointed out just before a thought had entered his head. "Isn't Kite supposed to be a system admin? Can't he pull some strings? I mean, our party right now isn't meant for races like this and I don't know if we'll make it in time"

"Well, he's an admin alright" Blackrose replied, still focused on the path ahead. "But in order for him to do area searches, he had to be a field admin, meaning he doesn't need to regularly troubleshoot the game, but he doesn't exactly get all admin privileges like deleting characters and things like that. And besides-"

"That would be cheating!" Atoli interrupted, "You can't just abuse your power like that!"

"Yup, she took the words right outta my mouth" Blackrose concluded before gripping the hilt of her sword and swinging at a floating insect, clipping it in half. As more of them were attracted, Haseo took out a couple with shots that emptied the chamber of the gun followed by a swift bolt of lightning that stunned a third. The Cross Weapon kicked on the side of a concrete wall for added jump leverage and finished it off.

"It'd be a _lot_ easier if these things weren't in the way!" Blackrose complained as the group continued onwards stretches of roads and crumbled buildings.

Eventually, they'd reached a dome-like structure which spanned to about the size of a basketball stadium though its insides looked just the same; damaged and crumbling with fallen debris.

Oddly, there wasn't anything present besides those broken virtual pieces scattered about, and that only meant that another party had already taken another crystal. "Attention all players. One crystal remains" During their travel time to the dome, a crystal was taken so now there was only a single gem remaining. The contestants were also informed that there would be a quick intermission before another boss would respawn.

"Darn...we didn't get here in time" Blackrose said, taking a seat on a concrete rock.

"We still have one more try, so let's do what we can!" Atoli added, trying to brighten up the situation somehow. Haseo got the point and decided to take a breather for the time being. He also thought that it would've been a wasted effort anyway since the crystal goes to the party who dished out the most damage to the boss. If there were numerous parties, then only one would win the prize. A strict rule of this event is that a party who fails to damage the boss more wouldn't get another chance to fight it and would be transported out of the area along with the winning team.

Since there was nothing else to do but recover lost HP and MP by resting, Atoli decided to put their break into a more informative use. "This is just out of curiousity, and I'm sorry if I'm being personal but...what was it like? Being a dothacker, I mean" She asked the Vane Crusher who looked up at the bright sky shown by numerous holes on the dome's ceiling.

"Hmm...not really sure how to answer that. If anything, I guess it felt good...but it was frightening at the same time. It felt nice to believe that I was able to do save so many people, but thinking back, there were so many times that I could've ended up just like the victims, and I almost did at one point. I guess we just owe all of it to Kite. After all, he was kind of the one that saved our hides in the end"

"In the end?" Haseo repeated, and the girl nodded her head.

"Yeah. During the final fight, all of us except Kite were data drained, and we fell into a temporary coma. But thanks to Kite, all of the victims were brought back including me"

"I see..." Atoli began, remembering that scared feeling she would have whenever she was faced with ordeals that threatened not just her, but the people she cared about. "So then, what kind of person was Kite?" At that question, Blackrose suddenly chuckled.

"One thing's for sure; he's a lot more mature now. there were times when he'd be so unsure of himself, and what he was going to do next. But I guess...over time that all changed. During our time in R:1, I guess all of us grew a little more mature one way or another. Kite is...also the type of person who'd be straightforward and honest, and he wouldn't leave anyone behind for any reason"

Both Haseo and Atoli paused after hearing her answer, and the trio stayed that way for about ten seconds; listening to a calm breeze that had passed by.

"I actually never thought of him that way before" Haseo began again. "You know, back in R:2, there was this play- I mean...A.I. who kind of looked like Kite. He really pissed me off at first, but then I realized that he wasn't the one to blame for my own problem. Eventually, I figured out that he was actually made by Aura, that goddess who was supposed to be the protector of The World. I never saw her face to face, but I heard her voice once"

"That so?" Blackrose replied with a curious tone, resting her hands on the hilt of her sword. "I can still clearly remember what she looked like. She was a really pretty girl wearing a long white dress, but anyway, did this Kite look-alike have a name?"

At that, the white haired teen grinned as if he'd reminisced a far-away memory. Seeing a small stone next to him, he casually picked it up and threw it a small puddle inside the hollow dome.

"...Tri-Edge, or at least, that's what I kept on calling it. I wonder if...it still exists in this version of The World?"

* * *

Finally, a cluster of data had formed into a large striped insect with four giant wings. It was mostly moss green in color, but the stripes varied greatly. To count, this was most likely the largest boss monster they'd seen yet.

"Ergh...this thing's creeping me out already" Blackrose started with a slightly disturbed mug. The group got up all at once and readied themselves as fast as they could. In the pass of a second, the enemy attacked, swooping down towards the three-man party who got out of its range. When it'd flown upwards again, Haseo took aim and fired a few shots, but his expression fell when his eyes read multiple single digit numbers. The boss' exact HP wasn't displayed, but its health bar barely even flinched.

"Tch, what the?" the teen grunted as the boss dove towards him. From the side, Blackrose swiftly swung her weapon at the insect, pushing it back from her ally and depleting the health bar a little more than just a single digit.

From there, Haseo came up with a sudden hypothesis. "I think the closer we are to it, the harder we can hit it" After attempting to draw its attention again, Haseo managed to taunt the boss towards him, followed by Atoli and Blackrose who attacked it with spells and strikes. From there things were looking brighter for the group, and now its HP was down to about 3/4 of its original life.

But that HP indication also meant one more thing. Suddenly, a cocoon-like structure formed itself around the boss along with a short flash of light. What the party saw moments later was the same humongous creature, but now its body was encased in dark green steel skin. Out of plain curiosity, Haseo fired at it again, but his faced showed no surprise at the verdict.

"This thing is _not_ making it easier for us" The former Rogue mumbled right before the enemy sprung at them once again. Probably the only positive side of the transformation was that it was slightly slower, judging from a few of its attacks. The party resumed its usual way of assault, and they were disappointed with the sudden drop in damage. This time around the inflicted numbers had gone down by more than half. Another aspect to worry about is that this wasn't a game where a player could simply avoid any attack. This game, like many others, had a universal rule that enemies will get a hit on you sooner or later.

At 1/2 of its hp, no other changes had occurred in the boss, but simply because the the creator had a good hunch that by now, some parties would be running low on supplies. Unfortunately Haseo's group was one of those particular parties.

"Hey Kid, hate to break it to you, but your pockets are almost empty" Skeith's voice suddenly spoke out inside his partner's mind.

"Gee, no kidding Sherlock" Haseo answered back as he ducked a massive swoop from the boss that created a strong gust of wind. There was one thing that Skeith didn't like about being in another person's mind, being the troubling fact that it took a lot out of him just to communicate with either Haseo or Ryou. Because of this he would take long naps that can sometimes be frequent.

The enemy had made a temporary retreat into the air and Haseo used this time to check his and his party member's status. Atoli was being drained of her SP now that she didn't have that many items left, and Blackrose was more or less in the same position. Low on healing items with half of the battle to go; it wasn't exactly a walk in the park anymore.

Fortunately, however, help seemed to have arrived when a sudden swift figure gave the boss a quick thud on the head before landing on the ground.

"Hey, hope you don't mind if we drop in" A young, female voice hurriedly greeted. But when this red-haired girl turned towards the group, her face brightened with surprise at seeing who she had just assisted. "H-Haseo...and Atoli?" She asked as she loomed her eyes over the two familiar PCs. Just sa she did, both teens also looked at the person's PC with a pinch of nostalgia. They'd recognized this girl's voice, the character model's short red hair and fan on her back. Most of all, it was her character name that caught their attention.

Atoli exclaimed, "Alkaid? As in _Alkaid_ Alkaid?" The blond girl didn't make much sense with that statement, but from her voice it was clear that both had fully recognized each other. They were still frozen in shock when two more people had came in, and one of them had also stopped dead in his tracks after hearing the short but astonishing conversation.

"No way; is it really you two?" A brown haired, green-clad teenager spoke.

"Wait a minute..." Haseo uttered, shifting his stuttering voice towards the brunette. After a few seconds, The Cross Weapon and the Illuminate had figured it out. "Silabus?"

* * *

Quite literally, everyone was frozen in their tracks except for Blackrose and the third member of the other party. The former seemed a bit confused at this chanced meeting, but speedily discarded that when the large insect had caught her sight.

"Hey, Hey, snap out of it!" The pink haired PC loudly alerted. "The bug's coming right at us!"

The whole group created space before the colossal attack could hit. Noticing the returned enemy, Haseo quickly put away his confusion as well. "We'll talk about this later! For now, let's just kill the damn thing!"

"Just make sure you pull it off, kid" Skeith said in response, and everyone had restarted the assault. With the combined effort of two 3-man parties, the skirmish was going much smoother than a few minutes back. Even with the boss' iron body, it wasn't enough to sustain multiple attacks each time. This also gave Atoli enough room to recover SP by staying still and then using it when needed.

With only a small chunk of HP left, the boss seemed to be attacking ever more aggressively, swooping back and forth with enhanced speed. It was clearly obvious that the person suspected of being the Alkaid known from R:2 was an elemental twin specializing in wind. She used both blades to shoot out multiple, short ranged crescent gusts that slowed the insect down as it dove towards her.

"Now!" She shouted, and Blackrose charged her sword with an intense energy before wielding it against the monster, knocking it back and setting it off-course. Taking this chance effectively, Haseo hopped on small pillars of debris until jumping on the insect's back and emptying the gun's chamber. Soon after the insect came crashing down flat on the ground.

It was now evident that the group had won, but it took one more assault to end it. With one last unified attack, the boss had turned into virtual dust that floated away in the wind.

At the same time, a message had appeared on Haseo's screen that read: "**Guild crystal X 1 obtained**"

"Looks like we got it" The Cross Weapon casually announced. Haseo's party was filled with relief, but the other seemed to be a bit downhearted. Just like the rules stated, only one party will be able to acquire the said prize.

But Silabus, proving that he indeed was the Silabus that Haseo knew, congratulated him with a warm smile. "Nice job, Haseo! Uh, you _are_ the Haseo I know, right?" He didn't know how to be precise about his question, but Haseo already knew what he'd meant.

"Yeah, it's me. Somehow, this looks like more than just your average day coincidence"

Atoli added, "And your PC models are still a bit similar to how they were in R:2" And with that, she proceeded with the question she'd been waiting to ask. "By any chance...did you two use black CDs when you first logged in? I know it's a really vague question but-"

"So you mean you know about it?" Alkaid interrupted, and now her question was answered.

"We used it too" Blackrose began, walking closer towards the group. "There's a meaning behind those CDs, but it's gonna take awhile to explain" From her peripheral sight, she remembered that there was a third party member in their group. This girl had short black hair, similarly colored eyes, and a red traditional outfit a bit like Alkaid's. Her character name read 'Nanase'

* * *

Back at Arc Resum, the whole situation was explained. Fortunately, it sank in their heads fairly quickly; probably because they'd been witnesses to many spectacular and extraordinary events in the game known as The World. It didn't come without questions asked, but they quickly found the answers they needed.

"Oh, by the way!" Silabus said in surprise, realizing that the character Nanase had been waiting for quite awhile. "This is Nanase. She was actually a guild member of Canard before you, Haseo. Sorry for not introducing her earlier"

"Tee-hee, I'm just glad I wasn't forgotten in the end" The black-haired girl said before turning towards the blond Illuminate. "And it's nice to see you again, Atoli"

"Huh? Have we met before?" At that question, Nanase grinned and suddenly spoke in a voice a lot more familiar to Atoli.

"It's Sophora, Captain of Moon Tree's sixth division. Do you remember now?"

Apparently she did, and Haseo could tell just by looking at the girl's eye-widened face. In truth, Haseo was surprised as well. He'd never known that the most silent member of the former guild Moon Tree was actually some girl who just used a voice microphone.

Seeing the shock on Atoli's face, Nanase began to explain. She'd told her that she was under orders by Zelkova, leader of the former guild, to act as the character Sophora in order to stop PKers from running rampant. And also, she'd told them that she had also used a black CD upon logging in, raising even more suspicion about what these disks truly are.

At that moment, A chime had made its way to Blackrose's short mail. When she read it, a small sense of urgency had welled up in her.

**"This is Aura. I must speak with you concerning Kite. I fear that his life is in danger**"

* * *

AN: well that was a very long chapter. Anyway, I'm sorry for the late update. I had a ton of things to take care of these past few days. Finally, the first main story plot arc has begun, and with that I'll stop introducing new characters for the time being. There's just too many of them now that I need to expand their stories more first. I also feel like I've introduced these characters a little bit too vaguely. You might want to research on some of them if you want (particularly Nanase). Orca will have to wait, and Tokio will have to wait even longer lol. Okay...I'm pretty tired now, so I'll be taking a long nap. See you soon!


End file.
